What is your absolute most favorite moment of being on a Disney ship?

[Mattalica]

Watching my kids go up and down the water slides over and over as I stand nearby with an ice cream cone in each hand.

 

[dcassetta]

I have the intercom announcement tone (notifying you there’s an announcement getting ready to be made) as my text message notification. I love it!

I do too!

 

[Sytrace]

My favorite defining moment is when I have totally unpacked and put away every single thing for our cruise. Only then am I on vacation. So this is why I love it when my bags arrive at 1:45 or 2:00 PM. lol

 

[lorimay]

The ships have a special smell ( OMG I'm weird) and as soon as we board I inhale and say "Ahhhh There's that smell"...... I love that smell!

 

[mocodis]

hanging out at outlook café on the wonder having a latte and enjoying talking to people there and just to enjoy the awesome view.

 

[TrishaK]

The best is having our family announced when we board the ship. Makes me teary-eyed just thinking about it!!

 

[bumbershoot]

I just like being on a cruise. On the ocean with no land in sight, that’s my fave.


I do like the horn every so often, but you can hear that from other ships when you’re near a Disney ship.


We opted out of being announced. Three different last names in our then family of 3 made it irksome. Plus, other than our very first Disney Cruise when family was already onboard, no one cares that the bumbershoot party is onboard lol. I am unable to suspend the disbelief for that bit.

 

[GrumpyBelle]

Walking onto the ship and hearing them announce our name is my favorite moment.

 

[jalapeno_pretzel]

Only done it once, but looking forward to #2. I think some of the best times were when we found ourselves not in a crowd. Walking around the pool & adult area at 10pm when it was really windy and we were all by ourselves, one time my kids just each plopped down in one of the large porthole windows off the lobby area and no one else was nearby and we hung out there for awhile, early morning trips to fill up coffee mugs, sitting on the veranda with a drink in hand.

 

[kylaura]

Hubby's fave - when you leave your room all a mess, towels on the floor, and come back and it is clean and orderly.

 

[KashasMom]

I just like being on a cruise. On the ocean with no land in sight, that’s my fave.


I do like the horn every so often, but you can hear that from other ships when you’re near a Disney ship.


We opted out of being announced. Three different last names in our then family of 3 made it irksome. Plus, other than our very first Disney Cruise when family was already onboard, no one cares that the bumbershoot party is onboard lol. I am unable to suspend the disbelief for that bit.

I don't like that they stopped announcing "Princess...." when my daughter boarded. Not sure what the issue was there.

We have one of those last names that is usually mispronounced so that's not it for me.

I do love seeing Mickey for the first time of the cruise though.

 

[CamColt]

This is a great thread! I am loving the replies!

It is hard to pick just 1, I have about 10 that pop into mind, LOL! But to keep it short, I'll just go with 2 that stand out.

All of embarkation day really, since I know we have the whole cruise ahead of us, but specifically, the sail away party is when it really hits. I think just all the running around of the days prior, packing, traveling, worrying about everything, once we are there and sailing away, I know this is it! After 21 Disney Cruises and 21 sail away parties, I still get teary eyed once we countdown and the streamers pop!

Also, there is something about returning to the room late at night with the bed turned down and the low lighting on, it's just so relaxing! And I can never go to bed without spending a few minutes on the verandah just looking out at the ocean as we cruise through it. It's my nightly ritual before getting into that VERY comfortable bed.

 

[mevelandry]

The first time I hear the horn.

 

[Steve Dexter]

I love the feeling at the beginning of the cruise when the ship starts to get out into the open ocean. At the front of the ship, getting a bit windy. Now you are really on a cruise with all of those fun times coming up. It feels like a lot of effort went into that moment. After 16 Disney cruises it has never gotten old.

 

[CamColt]

The ships have a special smell ( OMG I'm weird) and as soon as we board I inhale and say "Ahhhh There's that smell"...... I love that smell!

Not weird at all! I agree there is a "scent". Also, the dining rooms seem to have a distinct smell too, a combination of the food, and maybe the air conditioning. I don't know but I have occasionally gotten a similar smell in other places at home and I always say, it smells like the main dining rooms!

 

[lilsonicfan]

Riding the Aquaduck in the evening was super cool!

 

[Pandafamily]

Seeing the smiles on my sons as they ride the Aquaduck.

 

[Disney1fan2002]

Watching my kids go up and down the water slides over and over as I stand nearby with an ice cream cone in each hand.

Oohhh, the mental image of this has me cracking up. Do you alternate licks? I can just see you watching your kids, with a joyful smile, not even looking at the ice cream cones, just lick to the right, lick to the left..."Hi sweet children!" (wave and a thumbs up) Lick, lick, lick.

 

[hogie1]

After I tell a server "when you see my hand empty, bring me another drink" and they get what I'm saying!

 

[Pens Fan]

When I think back to any cruise we've taken, the first thing that springs to mind is just being out on our balcony listening to and watching the ocean - especially at night. The sound of the ocean (I get the same feeling sitting on the upstairs porch of our favorite beach house rental) is just mesmerizing to me. It's the same feeling I get when we are high up in the Rocky mountains. It's a sense of how small a part of this world we actually are, and how incredible the rest of it is. It's where I can find a true sense of peace - cheesy as that sounds .